It has issued a report, entitled ‘Going Hungry’, detailing how the cost of healthy food often means low-income parents cannot afford to buy nutritious meals for their kids.

The move comes just days before the Government wraps up its public consultation on health and diet in preparation for its forthcoming White Paper on the issue later this year.

The NCH is arguing that the consultation has paid too little attention to the problems faced by low-income families and is calling on food retailers and manufacturers to reduce salt, sugar and fat levels in food for children, improve labelling, remove snacks from supermarket checkouts and only promote healthy food.

The report is being sent to MPs, social policy academics, top civil servants in the Department of Health and the Department for Education and Skills and other key policy makers.

A regional breakdown of the findings is also being publicised to health and social affairs correspondents on national and regional news-papers, along with case studies of parents who find it difficult to provide healthy meals.